


stills my mind like the sunrise

by citadelofswords



Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: Mornings, Other, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, What's canon, just two dorks being sappy and in love, what's a timeline
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-12
Updated: 2018-01-12
Packaged: 2019-03-03 19:29:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13347957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/citadelofswords/pseuds/citadelofswords
Summary: five mornings cass and mako shared





	stills my mind like the sunrise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [chordialcompeer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/chordialcompeer/gifts).



> maddie said something about having a weakness for one partner asking the other to come back to or stay in bed and i... ran away with that a little bit
> 
> happy birthday ilie mou have our kids being cute and sappy and NOT AT ALL SAD THANKS
> 
> title from dreaming light by anathema which is my #1 soft early morning song

_**i.** _

Mako usually wakes up late on mornings when they’re not running a job, but the morning after Cass stays in his room for the first time he wakes up earlier than usual, jittery and nervous and excited in a way he hasn’t been since the last time he kissed Tower.

They had a good thing going on, he and Cass— sleeping together after jobs, usually, in hotels or apartments where they had no choice but to share the bed after (the first time Cass tried to sleep on the floor Mako had to manhandle them back into the bed, which led to a second round of sex, them oversleeping, Aria banging on Cass’s apartment door at one in the afternoon to make sure they were alive and subsequently finding out about their-not relationship). But they’ve never slept together on downtime before, when there wasn’t stress to work off or comfort to be had. And they’ve never slept together on the ship before.

Mako grins to himself and curls inwards in delight. He hadn’t even really expected Cass to agree to stay the night in his closet— it was tiny, after all, and Cass was much taller and bulkier than he was. Sleeping had required careful maneuvering and Mako had fallen asleep in the middle of expressing concern that Cass was going to pull something in their neck.

He rolls over to ask if they did and finds the other side of his bed empty, Cass’s clothes gone except for their discarded sweater on the floor. The question dies on his tongue, replaced with an expression of confusion he manages to bite back. Cass isn’t here. Which means that they left, at some point— had to have been very early, if they didn’t wake Mako up doing so— and hey, they didn’t wake Mako up doing so, why did they…

Mako’s stomach sinks a little. Of course they left, he tells himself. It’s not like this means anything to them like the way it means to him. Mako reaches up to touch his collarbones, where he knows there’s a couple of marks from the night before, and sighs.

He rolls out of his bed and pads to Cass’s sweater, picking it up. It’s soft and warm, a good dark green that he thinks brings out Cass’s scales and their eyes, and without really thinking about it he slips it over his head. So what? Cass left it in his room, and he’s only going to mope in here for a little bit and then go find something to eat.

His stomach growls at that exact moment and he huffs out a little laugh. On second thought. Food first. He slips out of his room and pads down the hallways to the kitchen, rounding the corner just as Cass turns away from the stovetop, clad only in a soft pair of sweatpants from their room, and meets his eyes.

“Oh,” Cass says, surprised. Mako gulps and tugs on the sleeves of the sweater. “Hi. I— I didn’t think you’d be up this early.”

Mako’s throat closes for a moment and he looks down. “Right,” he manages.

“I was going to— I was making us breakfast,” Cass says, and gestures to the stovetop. Mako looks up at them, hope sparking in his chest. “I didn’t think you’d wake up so early and I figured it wouldn’t take long and I’d bring it to you. I hope that’s okay.”

“No,” Mako says, his heart lifting again. “No, that’s great, I’m starving, actually.” And the stuff on the stove smells amazing. He’s not even sure what it is but he’s excited to try it.

“Actually, now that you’re here,” Cass says, with a smile, and Mako yelps.

“No, nope, you were gonna bring me breakfast in bed, so I’m going to go back to bed and you’re going to bring it to me,” Mako says, with a grin. He can’t resist taking the last few steps forward to lean up and kiss Cass on the cheek. Except Cass turns their head at the last second and it ends up being a peck on the mouth, which is so domestic that it makes Mako blush.

“Get out of here before I rope you into helping,” Cass says fondly.

Mako’s back out the door before they can even finish the sentence.

 

_**ii.** _

“Mako.”

“No.”

“Mako, come on, you have to let me go.”

“ _No_.”

Mako can hear Cass roll their eyes even though he’s got his face mashed into their collarbone. “Seriously. I’ve got to call Koda, tell them how the mission went—,”

“No you don’t,” Mako says. “You’ve _got to_ stay in bed for a little while longer, c’mon. Watch the sunrise with me.”

“Mako, there is no sunrise on Counterweight—,”

“You know what I mean!”

Cass sighs, and Mako can tell they’re torn and grins against their skin. But then they manage to untangle themself from him and sit up, and Mako sleepily blinks at their back for a moment before sitting up and wrapping his arms around their waist.

“Mako,” Cass says. “Come on.”

“If you want to go,” Mako says, and he’s being petulant now but he doesn’t care, “then you’ll have to drag me with you. Because I’m not letting go.”

Cass wavers for a moment, and Mako hooks his chin over their shoulder. They’ve paused halfway through putting their discarded trousers back on and that just will not do. Mako leans in to kiss their neck, under their ear, the scales that dust their jawline, brushing his lips over a mark he left the night before, teal against their skin, to feel Cass shiver. “Come on,” he whispers. “Stay with me.”

Cass hesitates for another moment, and then kicks off their pants again and turns around to kiss Mako properly, bundling him and his triumphant grin back into the mattress.

 

_**iii.** _

“Are we dating?” Mako asks Cass, tracing the lines of Cass’s palm.

They’re curled around each other in Cass’s bed on the Kingdom Come, in the early morning of a day when they have nothing to do, and though they’ve been awake for a while neither of them have bothered to move. Cass is pressed up against Mako’s back, nose buried in Mako’s fluff of hair, but at Mako’s question they shift a little so their chin is resting on the top of his head instead.

“I think so,” Cass murmurs. “I’d like to be, if you want to.”

“Oh,” Mako says, and he’s not sure what answer he was expecting but it wasn’t that. “I. Yeah. Me too.”

Mako can feel Cass’s mouth curl into a smile, somehow, he isn’t sure how. “Good,” they say.

He continues to draw stupid patterns on Cass’s palm with one finger. “I like you,” he says, without really thinking about it. “A lot.” In for a penny, out for a pound. “Have for a long time.”

“I like you a lot too,” Cass replies, and Mako can’t help it, he turns around in Cass’s arms so they’re nose to nose. “Have for a very long time.”

Mako doesn’t know what to say, so he squeaks out “Oh my god” and Cass smiles softly and stretches forward a little to kiss his nose. Their hand moves to thread through the hair on the back of Mako’s neck.

“Too much?” they ask softly, running their hand down the buzz on the side of his head.

“I’m good,” Mako manages. It’s just a lot, y’know, to find out that the hot scion you’ve had a crush on for ages and who you thought for a while you’d been having no-strings-attached sex with turned out to have had a crush on you for just as long, maybe even longer. God. Okay. “Maybe not?” he says, and buries his face in Cass’s chest. “Give me a sec.”

“Okay,” Cass replies, and continues to run their hand through his hair. Under his forehead, he can feel their heartbeat pick up for a moment before it calms back down.

“You like me,” Mako says, after a moment, and Cass’s heart flutters.

“Yes,” Cass says. “I don’t just invite anyone to stay the night, you know.”

“I know, I know, it’s just,” Mako takes a deep breath and looks up. “You’re you and I’m me, and it’s a lot to wrap my head around.”

“You’re amazing,” Cass says, eyebrows knitting together. “I-I know I may not always say so, but you are.”

Mako’s mouth drops open. “I!” he says. “Cass!”

“What?” Cass asks.

 _I love you_ , Mako thinks, but he doesn’t say it aloud. He stores that thought away for later and says, “When’s our anniversary?”

Cass’s face cracks into a smile, something Mako’s never seen before, soft around the edges and fond in all the right places. If he were standing, he’d be swooning into their arms. As it is, he’s bright purple. “We’ll figure it out later,” Cass says.

Mako scoots forward to kiss under their jaw before their cheeks catch fire with the force of their blush. “Promise?” he asks.

“Definitely later,” Cass says, and tips his face up so they can kiss him.

_**iv.** _

Mako is half-woken by the feeling of lips at the corner of his mouth and a whispered, "Good morning."

"Nnnnn," he mumbles. "Wh'time is it?"

"Almost four. I'm sorry to wake you, but you're taking up half the bed."

Mako opens his eyes and twists a little. "Cass? Tha' you?"

"Mmm," Cass says softly. "We finished the job a little early. I came straight here."

"Cass," Mako whispers, and reaches up. Cass sputters a bit and Mako jerks back. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine. You just almost poked me in the eye." Cass climbs onto the bed and nudges Mako over. "Come on. You don't want to be awake right now and neither do I."

"Wanna see you," Mako says, turning over and scooting closer to the wall so he can curl up around Cass's side.

"In the morning," Cass murmurs, and Mako presses an absent kiss to their collarbone. "Go back to sleep, love."

Mako does. When he wakes up again, Cass has turned onto their side so Mako's curled into their chest, forehead resting over their heart, and Mako hums and tips his face up so he can kiss them there.

There's a deep rumble in Cass's chest and they say, "G'morning."

"You  _are_ here," Mako mumbles.

"Told you last night," Cass chuckles.

"Worried I dreamed it." Mako starts tracing stars on Cass's chest. "It's been weeks."

"I know," Cass says, and they sound so sorry that Mako has to stretch so he can reach their face, fingers resting on their scales as he kisses them.

"It's okay," Mako says. "We got paid and you're here now, so it's fine. I just missed you."

Cass hums and kisses him again, letting their lips linger. When they pull back, they rest their forehead against Mako's and sigh. "I missed you too."

Mako nuzzles Cass’s nose with his, which he probably would never do if he wasn’t still half-asleep. “Don’t leave again,” he mutters. “I hate when you’re gone.”

Cass is quiet for a moment, and then pulls away a little bit to fiddle with something on their finger. Mako watches, hazy, as they work one of their rings off. “Sometimes I have to leave,” Cass says softly. “And sometimes you do, and I hate it every time.” They look at the ring, and then hold it out.

Mako is suddenly, instantly awake. “Cass,” he breathes.

“This is a promise,” Cass says. “No matter where the ocean may take us, you will always carry a piece of me with you.”

Mako takes the ring with shaky fingers. “You… you do know what the giving of a ring means, right?” he asks.

“I’m not an idiot,” Cass rolls their eyes. “We’ve got a different way of doing it on Apostolos, sure, but I know what a ring means. This…”

Mako’s eyes stretch wide as Cass trails off. “What?”

“I love you,” Cass says, in a rush. “I don’t know when, I don’t know how, but I do. And I— I don’t want to say that this isn’t a proposal— I mean, it isn’t, but it’s not because I don’t want to marry you, I just don’t think—,”

“Cass, Cass, stop,” Mako says, and he slips the ring onto his finger and takes their face in his hands. They must feel the metal of the ring against their face because they stop and open their eyes and look at him. “You don’t have to explain,” he whispers, and leans in to kiss them, slow and unhurried. “I get it.”

Cass relaxes and their lips curve upward a little. Mako kisses them again, trying to calm his pounding heart, but Cass nudges him away after a moment. “You don’t have to say it back,” they say softly, and Mako has no idea what they’re talking about for a long moment before his eyes flash open.

“Cass, Cass,” he says, “I— I want to.” He takes a deep breath. “I want to tell you. Because I do.” The words stick in his throat. “Uhhhhhh. Great. Good.” He laughs. “Shit.”

“It’s okay,” Cass says, and sweeps a hand up and down Mako’s back.

They’re silent together for a long moment.

“You love me,” Mako singsongs, because sure, he can talk about love when he’s not talking about his _own_ feelings. “I’m your little maintenance drone and you want to _marry_ _me_ —,”

Cass groans, but it’s a good-natured one, and they roll over so they’re on top of him, and he’s still laughing as they lean down to kiss the smile off his face. (It’s okay. They’re smiling too.)

 

 

_**v.** _

Mako wakes up in slow increments, rolling onto his back and stretching languidly like a cat. The bed is warm, the covers rumpled and soft, and Cass isn’t there.

Mako blinks open his eyes and inhales deeply. There’s no smell of breakfast wafting through the air, but as Mako comes to full consciousness he can hear the tap of nails on a screen; Cass, on the other side of the room, probably looking for a job.

“Cass?” he asks, voice rough with sleep, and the tapping stops. “What’re you doing?”

“Mako,” Cass murmurs. “I’m sorry, love, I just…”

Mako rolls out of the bed and pads across the room to drop his arms over Cass’s shoulders. It’s sense memory, at this point; too many mornings spent doing this. Mako doesn’t mind. He doesn’t mind at all.

“Come back to bed,” he murmurs, and presses a sleepy kiss to Cass’s cheek. “C’mon. Spend the morning with me before you go do all your ridiculous diplomat stuff.”

Cass turns their head to meet him in a slow kiss. Mako takes his time, trying to make it as thorough as possible, to convince them. “Please,” he whispers, when he pulls away, and laces his fingers with Cass’s in such a way that he knows his ring will clink against at least one of theirs. It’s a cheap trick, but it works every time, and this time is no different. Cass sighs, and rises, and lets Mako bring him back to bed.

Once there they curl up around him, enclosing him in their cool skin. Mako hums happily and burrows closer, scattering lazy kisses across their chest. “I love you,” he says, delighting in the way it still makes Cass’s heartrate pick up under his cheek, the same way it did the very first time he managed to blurt it out.

Outside their apartment, the sun starts to rise.

**Author's Note:**

> me: austin underscore walker doesn't care about timelines? fine then i don't care about timelines OR canon
> 
> find me on twitter @citadelofswords or [prompt me on tumblr](http://citadelofswords.tumblr.com)


End file.
